Financial problems at one of the UK’s top medical schools will set back recent gains in clinical academic staffing levels, warn leading academics.
There are also fears that academic job cuts will impact on teaching and training and deter new recruits from developing research careers.
This year a Medical Schools Council survey revealed that the number of academic staff had risen above 3,000 for the first time since 2000.
But it has emerged that Imperial College London is consulting on proposals to tackle a projected deficit of £28m in the next five years which is putting 80 of its 500 staff at risk of redundancy.
“This will send a negative signal to prospective trainees who might want to engage in a career in academic medicine at a time when we need to be attracting new talent into the sector,” said Geraint Rees, Professor of Cognitive Neurology at University College London, and a member of the BMA’s Medical Academic Staff Committee (MASC).
“My heart sinks when you read stories like this because academic medicine is already an uncertain career marked by competition and insecurity about where grant funding is coming from. Seeing people being made redundant from a medical school can only make people less interested in an academic career.”
Dr Peter Dangerfield chair of MASC said: “I do worry what effect this is going to have on both undergraduate and postgraduate education programmes because if you lose key players from the education process how on earth is education going to be taken forward?
“We have seen a massive increase in students matched by a massive decrease in academic doctors. What this means is increasing reliance on NHS staff to fulfil undergraduate teaching and whether that is appropriate or not is open to question. If we have no figure heads and respected practitioners at the top pinnacle of research, teaching and education then that is not very desirable from the profession’s point of view.”
Prof Rees said in the current bleak financial outlook it was a worry that other academic medical institutions may also be struggling financially. There was further uncertainty pending the outcome of the current government review of university funding. He said they would be raising their concerns about the future of academic medicine with ministers.
The BMA is representing individuals at Imperial who have been threatened with redundancy. It is also concerned that the job losses may create extra work for NHS colleagues, who may have to pick up the service work carried out by academics.
Prof Rees said: “This issue of redundancies is significant not just because it is the first announcement of possible large scale redundancies at a medical school but also for the future employment of these individuals in the current economic climate.”
A spokeswoman for Imperial College denied that the proposed redundancies would affect teaching and training. She said: “The College is making every effort to avoid compulsory redundancies. It is hoped that taking this painful step now will create a financially sustainable structure within which outstanding staff can be supported and nurtured over the long-term.”
